Compressed tablet.



UNITED STATES,

PATENT OFFICE.

ROBERT M. \VIIYTE, OF JERSEY CITY, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO SCHIEF- FELINAND COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A COPARTNERSHIP.

COM PRESSED TABLET.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 701,438, dated June 3,1902.

Application filed February 10, 1902- Serial No. 93,296- (No specimens.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ROBERT M. WHYTE, a

citizen of the United States, residingin J ersey City, in the county ofHudson and State of New Jersey, have invented a certain new and usefulImprovement in Compressed Tablets or Pills, of which the following is aspecification.

My invention has relation to a novel form of compressed tablet, pill, orthe like, and has for its object the provision of means whereby may begiven appropriate doses in proper proportions of two drugs having theproperty of reacting when wet and producing in a nascent r5 or freshcondition acompound having therapeutic properties.

Many pharmaceutical preparations are of such a nature as to lose theirvalue in time by more or less rapid oxidation or other chemical change.Such substances are necessarily administered immediately afterpreparation, and in order to render them conveniently available toordinary purchasers means must be adopted for separating the constituentparts until the dose is to be given.

It has been found that many substances useful in producing a desireddrug react more or less rapidly even when mixed dry, and are thussubject to deterioration. To prevent this, expensive and complicateddevices have been resorted to in producing doses of such drugs foruniversal consumption in a form insuring the separation of the tworeagents until the dose is administered. My present 5 invention providesa novel and improved means to this end and includes anovel-process forproducing such means with a considerably-diminished expense.

My invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, whichillustrates in central section a preferred form of my improved tablet orpill.

For greater clearness I shall describe myinvention as applied to theproduction of nascentferrous carbonate by the reagents used in what areknown as Blauds pills. It is to be understood, however, that myinvention is not limited to use of the specific reagents or drugs hereinnamed nor to pills or tablets for the final production of any onechemical substance.

In the drawing the tablet is shown as produced in two layers in contactthrough the middle. The relative thickness of these layers may bewhatever proves desirable in prac- 5 5 tice, and the size of the tabletusually depends upon the quantity appropriate for a single dose of thedrug in question.

In the drawing is shown at l a layer of one of the reagentssuch, forinstance, as carbonate of potash (K OO,)while the layer 2 represents thelayer of the second reagentas, for instance, ferrous sulfate, (FeSO Uponsolution either in water, before taking, or in the stomach thesereagents produce a 6 5 greenish ferrous carbonate, which is thebeneficial agent in Blauds pills. In a short time, however, thissubstance if exposed to the air absorbs oxygen, changes color, andbecomes ferric carbonate, Fe (CO which is valueless as a drug.

I have found that if the dry potassium car bonate and ferrous sulfate beintimately mixed and compressed into a tablet there will be a react-ionsoon resulting in the production of ferric carbonate and consequentdeterioration of the tablet. On the other hand, by compressing thesereagents together in layers, as shown at 1 and 2, the reaction can onlytake place along the surface of contact, and I have found that here theextent of the reaction is so small as not to materially impair the valueof the tablet.

In making my pill or tablet I prefer the following cheap and simplemethod, although it 8 5 is to be understood that in its broadest aspect.my improved tablet or pill may be produced by any desired process. AnyWell-known tablet-mold being used, it is first filled to a proper depthwith one of the reagents in a 0 dry powdered form. Upon this I place the.proper quantity of the second reagent in the same form and apply thenecessary degree of pressure. There is thus required only a singlecompression-stroke and the resultant composite tablet willprovepermanent and fit for sale and shipment.

While my invention is not limited in its broadest aspect to the use ofany given substance, there are certain chemicals which are known toreact and produce a gaseous product in material proportions. Suchchemicals are not appropriate for use where the tablets are to be keptlong before using, as there is apt to be such a disengagement of gasalong the surface of contact as to split the tablet in two. It isfurther obvious that while in the drawing 1 have shown the two parts ofmy tablet or pill set one beneath the other the same end is attainedwhere the two parts or layers are set side by side in contact, althoughthe form shown is preferable, as it facilitates the operation ofcompression in the mold.

What I claim is 1. The method of making composite dry tablets or pillswhich consists in forming a layer of a dry powdered chemical, thenforming a second layer in contact with the first of a dry powderedchemical capable of reaction with the first chemical and compressing theentire mass.

2. A composite pill or tablet consisting of two parts or sections of drychemicals compressed together in contact the one section with the other,said chemicals being adapted when wet to react and produce a desired drng.

3. A composite pill or tablet consisting of two layers of differentchemicals compressed together in contact, said chemicals being adaptedwhen wet to react and produce a desired drug.

4. In a composite pill or tablet consisting of dry chemicals which tendwhen mixed and compressed together to suffer deterioration, a section ofeach of such chemicals unmixed with the other, said two sections beingcom- ROBERT M. \VIIYTE.

W'itnesses:

C. W'Ml MONTGOMERY, XVM. JAY SCHIEFFELIN.

